UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're gonna have a tradition. Should we tell him the tradition? So, we really, like, -- we sort of like pretend like we're drinking here. We're having a good time. We're drinking a little bit (ph).

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We've been doing this, now, together four years.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But then we go out after. This is our fourth year --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sober. I know, and everyone's smashed, and they are all like, "(inaudible), shots, shots, shots, shots, shots." And that's what happens.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Not that we've ever had shots bought for us in New Orleans, ever. We would never do that, ever.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Never, ever, ever.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We'll be on the French corner (ph).

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (inaudible) band is a what (ph)? What's the name of that? UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's the Shotgun Jazz band.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Shotgun Jazz band.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is the most awesome venue. If you have never been in New Orleans and you come to Frenchmen St. There's PBA, there's Snug Harbor, but the Spotted Cat has CNN love --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Look at their selfies (ph).

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: -- and we appreciate it. Oh, selfie. Love it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Say that again, Mr. Producer. I can barely hear you. One left minute left in show. Why do we have to leave?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't want it to end.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Don't you guys (inaudible). We want like two or three more hours.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I know. The night is young. The night is young.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Look at those guys over there. We're going to kill (ph) them. Hey, turnaround to those two guys right there. See those two guys.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Those guys definitely (inaudible).

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There they are. That's my boo in a velvet jacket (ph). That looks boo in the camouflage jacket (ph). Wait, they (ph) -- wait (ph) -- aren't they handsome? They don't want to be on TV. Gotcha (ph).

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They -- they so hate us right now. They hate us. They've been hiding in the corner.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Come on, guys. Come on. Come on.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: On. Here they come.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Here they come. Hurry up.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Here they come.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Come on, get over here.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Happy New Year's, boys.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Happy New Year. Wait, you're on the wrong side.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm on the right side.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's okay.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I love you, baby. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Love you.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Happy New Year's.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I love you.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Love you.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is amazing.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're the best (ph). I'm so happy for you guys. Keep going (ph).

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm feeling the love. Yeah, we'll see you guys.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We can't wait for the wedding.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Wedding vows.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I know.

(MUSIC)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You look very handsome. Happy New Year, we have to go.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We have to go.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hey. We hope you have a very fantastic 2018. We hope you find love, happiness --

NATALIE ALLEN, CNN ANCHOR: Happy New Year, and thank you for joining us for the CNN Newsroom of 2018. I'm Natalie Allen, we're live in Atlanta.

Coming up here, all around the world, people are celebrating the start of a new year, world leaders from President Trump to Theresa May to Xi Jinping, all their thoughts on what they hope is in store for 2018.

One of the most notable came from North Korea where Kim Jong-un offered a new mixed message on peace and war. Plus, if you didn't notice, it was absolutely breathing as they rang in the New Year in New York City. It was an uncommon cold, we''' have more about that coming up here on Newsroom 2018.

Thanks again for joining us.

North Korea is kicking off the New Year with fireworks and the usual threats but, also an overture to South Korea. State media aired this video of fireworks, there are reports as well the country may light up another missile in a test for route this year. And Kim Jong-un says its nuclear weapons can hit the entire U.S. main land.

He made that claim in his New Year's address. But he also offered up something new and a little bit hopeful we're happy to day in the beginning of this New Year. CNN's Paula Hancocks is in Seoul, South Korea, for us, hello Paula.

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hello Natalie. Well, there really were two sides to this New Year's speech from the North Korean leader Kim Jong-un this time around.

There was the usual defiant nuclear message that North Korea is - according to Kim Jong-un is now a nuclear state. They've completed their nuclear capabilities he said within that message.

But here was also a much more conciliatory tone towards the neighbors, towards South Korea which we really haven't heard much of before from Kim Jong-un.

But first of all, to look at that sort of more bellicose language that he was talking about the United States and had a very clear message for them.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KIM JONG-UN, NORTH KOREAN LEADER (through translator): America will never be able to provoke war or attack us. The entire continent of America is within reach of our nuclear attacks. They must never forget the nuclear button is placed on my desk at all times. They must realize correctly that this is not a threat, but reality.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HANCOCKS: And Kim Jong-un also said that his country was a nuclear power, but wasn't going to use its nuclear weapons against any other country unless it was provoked, unless there was aggression towards North Korea itself.

But then when it comes to the more conciliatory tone, he was talking about South Korea specifically saying that the North and South Koreans need to work together to try and figure out how to alleviate the tensions on the peninsula, saying if North Korea and South Korea come together and join hands, we can prevent any aggression from the outside, saying that they'd be able to secure peace on their own.

Now this is significant because Kim Jong-un has effectively written out Washington from the equation here. Certainly a year ago, we saw some overtures towards the United States that we heard from North Korean officials there was hope that a relationship with the Trump administration may be different, But this year, they appear to have dismissed the possibility or the opportunity of negotiating with the United States. And they are focusing on South Korea also saying, that they would send a delegation to the PyeongChang Olympics which are going to be held in February in South Korea and saying that it's really a chance to be able to show the greatness of the Korean people - Natalie.

ALLEN: All right, well a positive step toward south Korea would be a nice step to take in early 2018, would it not. Paula Hancocks for us there, happy New Year to you Paula, thank you.

We'll turn now to Iran where the president has a message for the thousands of citizens who taken to the streets in cities across the country. Hassan Rouhani says Iranians are free to express criticism, but he warned violence will not be tolerated.

Antigovernment demonstrations continue for a fourth day Sunday. And that's even though state-run media reported that Iranian authorities temporarily restricted access to social media apps which protestors were using to share videos.

Nader Hashemi joins us via Skype from Toronto. He is the director of Middle East Studies at the University of Denver.

Nader thanks for coming on and talking with us - happy new year to you.

NADER HASHEMI, UNIVERSITY OF DENVER: Happy New Year.

ALLEN: Well Iranians are certainly letting the government know what they want for the New Year, aren't they? Better economy and a government that works for it's citizens. How do you think the Iranian government will respond, if at all, to this, and can it or will it evolve?

HASHEMI: That's a great question, it really depends on what faction of the Iranian government we're talking about. I think the elected government of president Rouhani is very much interested in trying to meet the demands of the protesters. In fact, Rouhani's statement tonight tried to sort of acknowledge the legitimate grievances the protesters had.

But his ability to, I think, initiate the type of structural and comprehensive reforms and transformation of Iran's political and economic system is quite limited, given the nature and the structure of power inside the Islamic Republic of Iran where the major decisions, particularly in terms of the budget allocations, are not made at the level of the government, but they're really made of the more senior, clerical, elite level. ALLEN: The supreme leader, the people on the streets -- there has been social media video of people tearing down a banner with him - and also calling for his ouster. Has that ever happened?

HASHEMI: No it really hasn't happened, at least with this much I think intensity and genuineness across many cities around Iran. So I think what we're seeing here is really a new phase of opposition to the Islamic Republic of Iran, coming from largely poor people, working class people at the lower ends of the social economic ladder, who are really just frustrated over the deteriorating economic conditions and the corrupt political system that seems unable to meet the demands of, you know, increasing numbers of Iranians.

So these types of sort of bold slogans, are really crossing red lines and I think in many ways it has posed a huge challenge for the existing establishment.

ALLEN: The New York Times reported this week, Nader, that Saudi Arabia and Iran are kind of in a competition of sorts, to show that they're evolving more than the other - and much of this is about women's rights. What we're seeing on the streets here in Iran, is that also about women's rights?

HASHEMI: Well I think in part, not directly. I think the fundamental motive and cause of these protests are economic grievances, but unbeknownst, I think, to most Americans, Iran does have a very highly- educated female population. A population that in many ways does not want to be treated as second-class citizens, and in fact inside the Islamic Republic, you know, there is a very powerful and, you know, important feminist movement that has been struggling in very difficult situations and under very dire conditions for decades now.

So I think these protests are not directly related to the question of, you know, the status of women in Iran. But at a deeper level I think part of the frustration, and part of the crisis of legitimacy, that this Islamic Republic is facing in the eyes of it's own people come from these educated women who no longer want to be treated as, you know, as some women in other neighboring countries - to Saudi Arabia you mentioned, Afghanistan, and other countries - so I think that is very much part of the deeper background story that really highlights the regime;s crisis of legitimacy.

ALLEN: We saw a woman standing up waving her hijab, not on the top of her head; there in the crowd so it'll be interesting to see where all of this goes in this New Year. Nader Hashemi, thank you so much for joining us.

HASHEMI: Happy to be with you.

ALLEN: The US president, Mr. Donald Trump, is continuing to speak out on the protests in Iran via Twitter, he Tweeted Sunday that Iran is the number one state of sponsored terror and has now closed down the Internet so that peaceful demonstrators cannot communicate. While Iran has restricted access to some social media apps, it has not shut down the Internet. President Rouhani says Mr. Trump is creating trouble for Iran. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HASSAN ROUHANI (through translator): The people of the United States who, for example, when it comes to (inaudible) problems of theirs is that (inaudible) and the person who has always been acting against the people from the first day that he entered the White House, he has created problems for the Iranian people when it comes to visa, when it comes to financial issues, when it comes to banking issues, he has been constantly creating problems for us, for the people, nonstop and continuously for the Iranian nation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN: Well President Trump is celebrating the New Year at his Mar a Lago Resort in Florida. He briefly spoke with reporters on his way to a New Years Eve party and gave an optimistic look at 2018.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP: We are going to have a tremendous year: the stock market I think is going to continue to go up, companies are going to continue to come in to the country, and they're doing it now soon to be a record clip.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN: When he was asked about the North Korean nuclear threat, he answered, "we'll see".

Political analyst Michael Genovese joins us now from Los Angeles.

It's not quite 2018 but Happy New Year to you Michael.

MICHAEL GENOVESE: You too, Natalie.

ALLEN: Thank you. All right, so let's talk about what 2018 may bring for the world. Let's start with President Trump, he has historically low approval ratings at the end of 2017, in some respects, he can only go up. How would you sum up his first year as president before we look ahead here?

GENOVESE: Well you know, President Trump has completely dominated the public space. He's done it through Twitter, he's done it though the kind of magnetism of his personality, and through the strength of his will. And so we're all responding to him, we're all dancing to his tune. He's great at self prominentization (ph), the question is will we tire of that act? Will his ubiquitousness start to get - to be boring or to lose it's kind of allure? Will we tire of the tumult?

It's been a hectic year, can he have another hectic year and still do well? His popularity has not gone up, it's gone down. His staff has been burning out quickly -- in fact, there's more turnover in his first year than in any in the last forty years. And so, you know, there's - there are a lot of warning signs to President Trump that his style of leadership may not really be something that has legs in the long run. ALLEN: Well we can only hold our mouths agape for so long, is what you're saying. Maybe it'll just be ho-hum for 2018.

Well, his first issue may be Iran, he has expressed support for the citizens who are protesting against their government. Does he hold any sway in what's playing out, certainly doesn't seem so from Mr. Rouhani's perspective.

GENOVESE: Well you know, this is a time when the leaders of the West should say that they support the aspirations of the Iranian people, to be encouraging of that, but not too belligerent, not too pushy. Let the Iranian people have their say, show that we encourage it, so that we support it. But you don't want to be overly dramatic - you don't want to overly threaten the Iranian government right now.

This is where the people are really starting to speak out, and ultimately every single government on earth has to respond to its people. And a lot of the protest that we've seen come not just from the central leadership structures, and not just from Tehran, they're from the providences. And so, this looks like it has some legs and may have some staying power. We shouldn't stand in the way of it, nor should we be pushing too hard. I think we should just be encouraging.

ALLEN: So 2018 beckons, what would you say is important for Mr. Trump and his administration for the first quarter of this new year?

GENOVESE: Well you know what, there's - there are a lot of big things on the horizon. China has been rising as the US has sort of abdicated leadership in the global community. We need to figure out what our role is in the global community. Are we going to be leaders of the community that we helped create? Or are we going to pull away and abdicate leadership and open the door for China?

North Korea's a big problem, and today there was a huge - potentially huge step where Kim Jong-un gave a little bit of a carrot, a little bit of a stick. I think it's way, way, way too early to pop a cork other than the New Year's cork on this one. But Kim Jong-un realizes that now that he is in effect, a stable nuclear power, now he has to take the harder step which is, how do you normalize that?

And I think his movement to try to go not through the United States but to go through South Korea, might be a very important one that we ought to encourage. Part of leadership is to know when to turn up the volume, and when to turn it down. And on this, the United States probably would be best served to turn down the volume, let's see if South Korea and North Korea can have a conversation. Let's see if in fact they can start to normalize relations, soften their relations - talk half down their military tensions.

Kim Jong-un used to save face, he cannot do it by backing down to the United States, he can do it to a large extent if it's a family affair and both the north and the south agree to this. So I think in terms of presidential leadership on North Korea, right now perhaps less is more.

ALLEN: Sounds like it, and yes fingers crossed for that overture to South Korea from Kim Jong-un.

All right, we thank you as always Michael Genovese, see you again in the New Year.

GENOVESE: Thank you, bye-bye.

ALLEN: Well next here, the world welcomes 2018 in style.

We'll bring you the sights and sounds of some of the biggest New Year celebrations as we push on here.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KATE RILEY, CNN SPORTS PRESENTER: I'm Kate Riley with your CNN sport headlines. Manchester City is still unbeaten in the English Premier League, but for the first time in over four months, they've been held to a draw in Sunday's goalless result against Crystal Palace, it means that City has fallen one short of matching Bayern Munich's record of 19 straight wins.

That's certainly disappointing for City, but of greater concern for them will be the injury to Gabriel Jesus, who was in tears when he left the pitch, boss Pep Guardiola says he might be out for up to eight weeks.

Staying in the EPL and the Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger, there's a new league record having managed his 811th game in England's top flight. The record, which broke that of his former rival Sir Alex Ferguson, was set in Arsenal's 1-all draw away to West Brom. During Wenger's 11 years with Arsenal, he has won three Premier League titles and 17 total trophies. The Gunners are currently fifth in the EPL table.

And the New England Patriots have secured home field advantage throughout the NFL playoffs. Tom Brady and the defending Super Bowl champions beat the New York Jets on Sunday to secure home field throughout the playoffs for the third time in the last four years. The last two times they did it, they did go on to win the Super Bowl.

And that's a look over sports headlines, I'm Kate Riley.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN: That was the moment so many were waiting for right there. May have been below freezing in Time Square, but sprits nonetheless high as New York welcome 2018 with this iconic Ball Drop, confetti and Frank Sinatra.

In London, there was no shorter, the crowds were more than 100,000 ticket holders packed the bank of the Thames for that right there, beautiful. In Hong Kong, their sky exploded with color during this spectacular fireworks display over Victoria Harbor.

And of course earlier, Sydney, which always gets to kind of kick it off for us from one of the first places to ring in the New Year, it's rainbow fireworks paid tribute to Australia's historic same sex marriage vote. Nice theme for the folks of Australia down under, where it's nice and toasty, Ivan Cabrera, nothing like people in New York have to endure.

IVAN CABRERA: I know, I was going to say I have to get to Sydney -- summer there of course, so what can go wrong with that, being in Sydney to ring in the New Year.

KATE RILEY: I know

CABRERA: Being in Sydney and bringing in the New Year. But yes, if you were in the northeast, and by the way Happy New Year everyone, Natalie as well - as we talk about temperatures, brutally cold and here's the thing - it was the second coldest - if you're going to go in to the cold, in to the tundra of the northeast with

RILEY: You picked the wrong year

CABRERA: You want to be - well, right you did pick the wrong year. And you didn't even get the number one slot, right? We got temperatures everywhere from 20 - we have 40 below wind chills up in the north. I mean at this point it's just gotten out of control and it's already come down all the way across the southeast, so folks thinking they can escape the cold air, you have to go west out to California, or in Sydney fantastic stuff.

Over 170 million people now still impacted by this cold air and it is not just cold, it is dangerously cold when we talk about wind chills anywhere from 20 to 30, we've seen as low as 40 below zero - that continues across the Midwestern US. And even the northeast, look at Boston, New York 11 right now. Minus 6 the wind chill, as we get in to the morning we'll continue to see temperatures rather chilly with daytime highs really not making it out of the teens and down in the 20s across the southeast.

So yes, another shot of arctic air coming in across the northeast and this will continue in fact not just arctic air, oh well why don't we just throw in a snowstorm and have that added - that's how we're going to start 2018. Area of low pressure will develop across the southeastern US and that low is going to continue to track up to the north so that I think by Wednesday and Thursday it'll be snowing bonkers here across portions of the northeast, and then eventually it heads out from the northeast out to Nova Scotia but I tell you what, it is said going to continue to be mighty cold even after that big front comes through.

Oh and there it is, I think that kind of encapsulates what happened earlier today. I don't know who that is - but there it is 2018 with as may layers as you can find.

RILEY: You can't even - it looks like 2008.

CABRERA: It does, 10 years ago.

RILEY: So - all right - thank you, Happy New Year. Happy New Year everyone, our top stories right after this.